Booktalking "Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief" by Bill Mason

(NY Public Library) I have always been fascinated by thieves who could pull off multimillion-dollar heists, steal paintings from museums beefed up with security, etc. However, all of the stories included a ring of thieves. Not this one. Singlehandedly, a family man with a double night life stole from the rich and famous. Risked his life scaling the sides of the 15th floor of the home of Armand Hammer during a storm to find some "baubles," as he refers to jewels.

Seems that one of the hobbies of the rich and famous who live a life of leisure is to advertise their wealth...on their person...and in magazines. Mason looked through the latest high society magazines like they were free catalogs of riches just waiting to be his. He hobnobbed with both the wealthy and criminals in order to learn about security systems. Seemlessly, he slipped between his conventional life and his addiction to the adrenaline and thrill of committing an illicit act. He told no one of his crimes and left few clues, except for the time that his wife found US currency plastered about the house to dry.

Mason had no financial need to steal jewels. He loved the thrill of the heist, the challenge of the act, and the adventure. Being somewhere he was not supposed to be that no one thought he could get into appealed to him. At times, he was really amazed that wealthy individuals would spend so much money on security systems, locks, and safes, and sometimes leave their jewels out on counters in plain sight, leave locks unlocked and safes unused. Guess how much time he spent in jail for his years of night prowling.

Confessions of a Master Jewel Thief by Bill Mason, 2003

Con People Are Actors: Turns out that Mason was a decent actor. He regularly hobnobbed with patrons of exclusive clubs, and he sneaked in by joining an unsuspecting group and simply acted as though he belonged. He suspected that the staff knew the real deal, but they did not reveal him.

The Perfect Crime: Once, however, the gig was almost up when his wife found money plastered about the house for drying. John E. Douglas, pioneer of the psychological profiling unit at the FBI, stated that it was impossible even for him with all his knowledge to commit the perfect crime, because human beings are perennially fallible. Mason was eventually caught, and he worked with the FBI to develop ways to apprehend thieves.

John E. Douglas books
Books about burglars
College Parents of America - Preventing Theft
Insurance Bureau of Canada - Preventing Theft
National Crime Prevention Council - Preventing Theft

Source: www.nypl.org